Process of sterilizing milk.



C. DE BOOK.

PROCESS OF STERILIZING MILK. APPLIGATION FILED 00117, 1912.

Patented Sept. 30, 1913.

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CHARLES DE BOCK, O1? ZELE, NEAR DENDERMONDE, BELGIUM.

PROCESS OF STER-ILIZING MILK.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Sept. 30, 1913.

Original application filed March 7, 1911, Serial No. 612,940. Dividedand this application filed October 17,

. 1912. Serial No. 726,349.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES on Boon, captaincommandant, a citizen of the Kingdom of Belgium, and resident of Zele,near Dendermonde, Belgium, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in Processes of sterilizing Milk, being a division of my aplication Serial N 0. 612,940, filed March 7, patented February 4, 1913,No. 1,052,210; andI do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear,and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to letters orfigures of reference marked thereon, which form part of thisspecification.

The present invention relates to a process of sterilization of milk andother liquids, by heating the liquids, under ressure, in theirreceptacles and transporting or dispensing vessels themselves, withoutaltering the constituents .thereof or the physical properties by theoperation of sterilization and without, after this operation ofsterilization, the contents of the said receptacles coming, in anymanner, in contact with the external atmosphere nor with any body notpreviously sterilized.

In order to obtain a perfect sterilization,

- the receptacles and their contents must be heated to sterilizingtemperature, that is to a temperature suiticient to destroy all themicro-organisms and their spores. This temperature, according toPasteur, is for milk about 110 to 115 centigrades.

According to my invention, I submit the liquid to be'sterilized in itsvessels, before the beginning of the sterilization and during thesterilization and during the subsequent cooling to a pressure,transmitted by the liquid to be sterilized itself. This pres sure is inexcess of the vapor pressure of the liquid at the sterilizationtemperature,

- so that there cannot occur, during the operation, any decomposition orchange in the liquid by reason of the high temperature required for itssterilization. For the sterilization of milk, this pressure is from twoto four atmospheres.

It has already been proposed to sterilize in closed vessels, butpressure has not been applied to their contents before the heating ofthem has commenced, consequently the pressure inside these vessels onlygradually rises as the operation of heating progresses and is producedsolely by means of the pressure of the vapors produced inside thevessel. The consequence is that, if there is no suiiicient pressure onthe contents of the vessels at the beginning of the operation, duringand after this operation, one may notprevent the decomposition or changeof said contents. It has also been proposed to submit the liquid to besterilized to the pressure 'of a gas; in consequence of the compositionof the materials and in consequence of the pressure, this gas penetratesinto the liquid and alters the chemical and physical properties thereof.For instance, if the milk is submitted during its sterilization to apressure of carbonic acid, this gas penetrates into the milk'and oneobtains milk with froth which has no longer the properties of naturalmilk.

It mustbe noted that according to my invention, the pressure maximum, towhich the liquid is subjected during the operation, is applied beforeany heating; it must further be noted that the required pressure istransmitted to the liquid by means of the liquid itself. This manner oftransmission of the pressure and the applying of the pressure maximumbefore any heating distinguish the present invention from all processeswherein the liquid is submitted to the pressure of a gas.

In the drawing the dispensing "essels l are placed in an autoclave orsterilizing apparatus, 3. In said autoclave is a pipe system 1 havingsuitable valves 11 to admit the liquid to the vessels 1. The pipe system1 in the autoclave or sterilizer 3 is connected by pipe 5 to a line pipe6 to which several sterilizing vessels 3 may be connected. A standpipe 7is connected to the line pipe 6, or, as the case may be, to the pipe 5.This pipe is of a height sufficient to produce the required hydrostaticpressure in the vessels 1. A tank 2 may be connected to the pipe, 6 or5, to supply liquid to empty dispensing vessels 1. Hot water is admittedto the autoclave 3 at 8, and is discharged therefrom at 9.

A more detailed description of this apparatus will be found in my U. S.Patent No. 1,052,210, dated February 4, 1913.

I claim:

A process of sterilization which comprises placing the liquid to besterilized in the obtaining the entire and oomplete sterilitransportingor dispensing vessels, by subzation. 10

mitting this liquid, by means of the liquid In testimony whereof I afiixmy signature itself, before the heating producing the in presence of twowitnesses.

5 sterilization and during the entire heating CHARLES DE BOCK.

and subsequent cooling period, to a pressure Witnesses: greater than themaximum vapor pressure G. VAN DER HAUGHEN,

at the maximum temperature required for PAUL TART.

